Searching for Friends
by Sketcher1994
Summary: "Look, my ex is over there and I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend." Levy stood awkwardly, trying not to look at Lucy. How'd she manage to get into this mess? They'd been having fun until Lucy's ex had shown up. Now she was stuck there, waiting for a complete stranger to finish kissing Lucy, only to find herself being asked if she'd seen a tall, leggy blunette by some joker.


**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

 **So, this is a longish one-shot I wrote a while back and never posted. In fact, according to the "properties" of the Word document, I started writing this on the 26** **th** **of April at 1:05am...If I get an idea in my head, I can't sleep...Anyway! You're getting it today as a bit of an apology! My internet got cut off with no warning, which is why I ended up disappearing the way I did...I would have posted yesterday (it came back on about half 4 on Wednesday), but I was out being a navigator...My brother and his fiancée are at a wedding this weekend. My mum drove them. She panics when it comes to city driving and she had no idea where she was going.**

 **Anyway! Hope you enjoy this! The ships involved in this are Gajevy, NaLu and Gruvia! I was going to try to write a very quick NaLu as an apology for the short last Friday not getting posted (internet got cut off sometime during the night, so it wasn't on when I got up Thursday), but I was proofreading this and realised just how much NaLu actually appears in this. Ah! And there was a prompt that started this...It's the bit Lucy says in the summary! I had just watched a film and then came across the prompt. I really wanted to use it** (because I find things like that amusing, but the situation _shouldn't_ need to occur. I have done this, several times, but because some people think that they have the right to touch you even though they have never met you. I usually end up kissing my best friend, but for some people, that is even more of a turn on :P I don't have a problem with people who do, but if you're kissing someone else, the assumption should be "they are clearly not interested", _not_ "I want some of that". Rant over. Sorry.) **, but I decided against going with the typical idea. I went "third wheel". Please enjoy! XD**

 _(Apparently I'm chatty today! Sorry! This is what happens when I can't give you anything for a week!)_

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"Look, my ex is over there and I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend."

"Huh?"

"Please? Just for ten minutes? My friend and I came here to have fun and he seen me...He started being a jerk and I told him to leave us alone. Well, he became even more of a jerk at that, so I told him we were here with my boyfriend...I kinda just pointed in a random direction and now he's told me to prove it. You just happened to be in that direction, so please pretend to be my boyfriend?"

"Lu, I think you just creeped the guy out." Levy sighed, tugging on her best friend's arm.

"Sure." The pink haired guy grinned widely, managing to force a genuine smile out of both of them. "What do you need me to do?"

"Em, sorry...but do you think...you could, you know, kiss me...? You don't have to, but he might actually believe me if you do!? I am so sorry!" Lucy rushed, her cheeks flushing crimson.

"Em, ok? So I just have to kiss you?" The pink haired guy replied almost too calmly, earning a shy nod from Lucy. "Sure!"

Levy stood awkwardly, trying to look anywhere but at Lucy as the stranger kissed her. How had she managed to get into this mess? They had just been having fun and then Lucy's creepy ex-boyfriend had shown up. Now she was stuck there waiting for a complete stranger to finish kissing her best friend. Well, at least it seemed to be the best kiss Lucy had had in a while, judging by how much she was getting into it. There was no way her ex wasn't going to believe _that_ wasn't real.

"Hey...Why is your friend kissing the pink haired idiot?"

"What?" Levy started, spinning around to find herself staring up at a man with tufted, straight, midnight blue hair.

"Why is your friend kissing the guy I came here with?" The guy sighed, shaking his head as he looked over at the two kissing.

"I am so sorry! She didn't mean to get between the two of you – she _really_ just needed someone to pretend to be her boyfriend to get her ex to leave her alone! I promise she wasn't trying to take your boyfriend!" Levy exclaimed, panicking as she thought of her best friend getting into trouble from the guy's _boyfriend_.

"Boy- He's not my _boyfriend_! A group of us came out for a couple of drinks! He's not even my friend, never mind my _boyfriend_!" The guy yelled back in disgust, taking a step back from her.

"Sorry! I- I didn't mean to- Oh, just go ask him yourself." Levy sighed, realising she was just making things worse.

"...huh? Eh, well, I figured I'd ask you since the girl actually seems pretty into it. I don't think Natsu's ever kissed anyone before." The guy smirked, taking a sip from his bottle as he continued to watch.

"Really? Wow...He seems pretty good...?" Levy replied, turning to look back at the two still kissing.

"I was just wondering how." The man laughed, offering a hand to her. "The name's Gray and the pink haired idiot over there is Natsu."

"Levy and the blonde kissing Natsu is my friend, Lucy." Levy returned with a sigh, shaking his hand. "Think they'll stop any time soon?"

"Yeah, but I think you might be stuck with him the rest of the night now. He's like a dog: give him something and he'll follow you anywhere." Gray replied with a smirk, taking his hand back before turning to move back to the bar.

"Hey, where are you going?" Levy asked, starting to follow.

"Excuse me; have you seen a tall, leggy blunette?"

"Hah hah, very fun-ny..." She trailed off as she turned around, coming face to chest with a man in a navy blue t-shirt.

"That wasn't a dig at you, Shrimp. I came here looking for my friend who just so happens to be following the guy you were just talking to." The guy sighed, folding his arms in front of his chest.

"Em, no? And why is she following Gray? And did you just call me 'Shrimp'?!" Levy exclaimed, glaring up at him.

"You're talkative." He grunted, turning his head to scan the room as he spoke. "Can you just let me know if you see her?"

"And how will I know if I see her?" Levy replied, allowing a hint of annoyance to slip into her voice.

"How many tall, leggy, blue-haired women do you know? I personally only know _one_ and I can't damn well find her." He returned sarcastically.

"And why did you think I could help? It's not as if us blunettes all automatically gather together." Levy huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"If that was true, I'd have met you before, wouldn't I?" He growled, glaring down at her before returning to his overhead searching. "It's just you were talking to the guy she's interested in, so you're pretty likely to meet her."

"You know, if you're friend is seriously interested in him, maybe you should be happy for her and just let her go? If she's trying this hard to avoid you, she's clearly not interested in you." Levy replied helpfully, turning to move away from the strange man, only to find herself stopped by a large hand on her shoulder.

"I ain't interested in the damn woman; I'm just looking out for her. She's a good friend that's been there for me for years and I ain't about to just let her get hurt without doing anything." He grunted as he let go of her, allowing her to keep walking away from him.

Levy glanced around her, realising she had lost Gray. She apparently even had to watch her back now for some random blunette with long legs. What was she supposed to do if she did find the woman? Jump up and down waving her arms? He hadn't exactly given her a name or a way to contact him. Why had he even bothered approaching her? Levy turned to walk back to Lucy, finding her friend missing. Where was everyone disappearing to? She couldn't even see the guy that had been looking for his friend anymore.

She began to push her way onto the dance floor, wishing that someone would just flick some lights on. How was she supposed to find anyone in the middle of a busy nightclub in the dark? This was insane. She didn't even like the dark, but here she was, searching for her missing friend. Oh wonderful, she had joined the league of the creepy guy looking out for his friend. Although, if his friend was now looking for her and she was looking for her friend, did that mean that the easiest solution for the guy was to stand with Lucy? It seemed like a good idea, but what excuse could he give Lucy?

"Excuse me?"

"What?!" Levy snapped, slapping her hands over her mouth as she spun around to face two women, one red haired and the other blue haired. "I am so sorry! I'm just trying to find my friend and I really want to go home."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. It's just that this woman was following you and when she couldn't give me an answer as to why, I thought I would ask if you were aware of her?" The red haired woman replied, a friendly smile across her lips.

"Oh! Yes! I am! Her friend told me that she would probably approach me because I had spoken to Gray. Her friend is actually looking for her. He asked me to let him know when I saw her, but I don't actually have a way to contact him." Levy rambled, her cheeks heating as she became aware of the situation. "Hi, I'm Levy...?"

"Erza. Nice to meet you, Levy." The woman smiled, offering her hand in a strangely familiar manner. "This is Juvia and I believe you said that her friend, who is looking for her, told you that she would follow you because you had spoken to Gray? How do you know Gray?"

"That's another long story, but basically my friend's ex was being a jerk, so she pointed at a random guy and said we were here with her boyfriend. She ended up kissing Natsu and I ended up talking to Gray. Then he walked off and this giant guy walked up behind me, asking if I'd seen a tall, leggy blunette,and I'd thought he was making fun of me...Turns out, he wasn't..." She explained awkwardly, gesturing to Juvia.

"Gajeel-kun is here looking for Juvia?" Juvia asked, suddenly trying to look around the room.

"Yes, if 'Gajeel-kun' is a giant in a navy blue t-shirt." Levy sighed, earning a sympathetic smile from Erza.

"Long night?" Erza inquired, laying a hand on Levy's shoulder comfortingly.

"Very. Now I guess I have to find 'Gajeel-kun' as well as Lucy...I wouldn't have thought either of them would be difficult to find – one's ridiculously tall and the other is with a guy with what looked like pink hair." Levy muttered, glancing around the room.

"Does your friend have blonde hair?" Erza grinned, tightening her grip on Levy's shoulder.

"Yes! Do you know where she is?!" Levy exclaimed, practically jumping in happiness.

"She's sitting with my friends in the other room." Erza explained, grinning at Levy's excitement. "Now I just have to find this 'Gajeel-kun'." She winked, turning to lead them through the crowd towards a room at the back of the club.

...

"Hey, Juvia, I'm really sorry we didn't manage to find your friend." Lucy sighed, wrapping an arm around Juvia's shoulders, Natsu's arm around her waist.

"Yeah, I didn't think we'd find it so hard once we'd split up." Gray added, offering the taller blunette a sympathetic smile.

"It's ok, Gray-sama~! Gajeel-kun will find Juvia! Perhaps Gajeel-kun has already found Juvia and does not wish to approach everyone! Gajeel-kun is very shy, but pretends to be grumpy!" Juvia chimed, reaching out her arms to wrap herself drunkenly around Gray, Gray only just catching her as she lost her balance.

"Are you sure it's ok to just leave him? He did come here looking for you?" Erza asked, watching the club door over her shoulder as they walked along the street.

"If everyone left Juvia, Gajeel-kun would appear to take Juvia home~!" She called out, tightening her arms around Gray's neck as he turned his head away from her.

"Sounds like a great friend." Gray stated sarcastically, leaning over to pick her up bridal-style as she stumbled again, almost taking both of them down.

"Gajeel-kun _is_ a wonderful friend~!" Juvia sang happily from Gray's arms, earning a giggle from Levy and Lucy.

"Who do you prefer, Gajeel-kun or Gray-sama?" Lucy asked teasingly, earning a grin from Natsu and a reprimanding glare from Levy.

"Gajeel-kun is Juvia's best friend, but Juvia loves Gray-sama~!" Juvia cried out happily, earning a full-faced blush from Gray.

"And Gray was getting jealous!" Cooed Natsu, earning a glare from Gray as Juvia shrieked.

Levy sighed and shook her head, silently laughing at the odd circumstances that had lead to her walking home with these strange, lively people. She rubbed her arms as a cool breeze brushed past them, suddenly making her aware of her bare arms. She stopped where she was, glancing at her watch and then back in the direction that they had come. She had forgotten her coat and had less than five minutes to run back in time to get it.

"Lucy, I forgot my coat...I'll just run back and get it, ok?" She explained nervously, ignoring the concerned look on her friend's face as she turned and began running through the dark towards the club.

She raced towards the street corner, turning down onto the street that held the club, ignoring the fear building up inside her. What was she doing? She had been safe with the group, even if she had been a little cold. Now she was alone in the dark. She closed her eyes tight, running harder, running to escape her fear. She ran into a solid object and bounced back to fall onto her butt, landing on cold, damp pavement. What had she run into? She looked up, her eyes trailing up long, baggy, cream trousers and up onto a tall, navy blue t-shirt.

Juvia's Gajeel-kun.

"You should really watch where you're going, Shrimp." He grunted, offering her his hand.

"And you need to stop calling me 'Shrimp'." She returned, helping herself off of the ground. "I was trying to get back to the club to get my coat."

"Good luck with that – it's closed for the night." He replied, folding his arms in front of his broad chest. "I was the last one out."

"Oh, sorry! We found Juvia!" She exclaimed, finally remembering that they hadn't told him yet.

"I know. I seen her having fun, so I decided to sit and have a couple of drinks on my own before making sure she got home alright." He grunted, beginning to walk in the direction that Levy had just come in.

"So that's what she meant..." Levy trailed off thoughtfully, recalling Juvia's words as she began to follow.

"What shit was she telling you?" He grumbled, glancing down at her.

"Just that if we'd left her, you'd appear to take her home." Levy smiled down at her feet, glad he was actually as kind as Juvia had said he was.

"So why were you the one left behind?" He grunted, still looking down at her as they rounded another corner onto the main street.

"I ran back to get my coat." She replied, looking into a shop window in an attempt to hide her embarrassment. "I told them to go on ahead – they were having fun and I thought I'd be fine."

"And that's why you were running scared in the dark." He smirked, laughing quietly as she began to pout.

Who did this jerk think he was? He was laughing at her and they'd only just met! Her friends were busy taking his friend home, while he just lazily wandered the stupid streets! Did he really care about his friend? What if her friends were actually murderers?! ...her friends? Before tonight, she had only known Lucy and Lucy had only met the others tonight. She'd left her best friend in the hands of potential murderers and she was annoyed that this guy had left his best friend with the same three people? Who were the three of them? Helpers of strays?!

"We should maybe hurry up." She stated, suddenly picking up her pace.

"What're you thinking?" He asked, walking at a more normal seeming pace for his longer legs.

"I just realised we both just abandoned our drunk best friends in the hands of total strangers." Levy replied, biting her lip as she reached the crossroad in the centre of town.

"Total strangers, huh? Juvia's met the stripper guy before and your friend seemed to be getting along pretty well with the fire starter." He replied, pushing her forward. "They'll be fine, trust me."

"And why should I trust you? I just met you tonight." Levy returned, stopping in the middle of the road with her arms folded across her chest defiantly.

"Juvia can handle herself, even drunk, for one thing." He grinned, sharp white teeth catching her eye in the dark. "And the three of them ain't a bad lot. Titania has a bit of a reputation for helping people out and the boys one for destroying things, but they're supposed to be nice guys."

"I suppose...Erza did try to warn me that Juvia was following me...Then she was perfectly happy to get me back to Lucy so that she could help Juvia find you." She smiled, beginning to walk again. "But that doesn't explain why I should trust you."

"You shouldn't, but I am walking you home whether you like it or not." He grunted, looking straight ahead of him.

"What? I thought we were trying to catch up with the others? Why are you walking me home?" Levy rushed, staring up at him in surprise.

"The others will get home safe, but I ain't gonna leave a girl that's scared shitless of the dark to walk home alone at night. I'm bigger and scarier than anything that goes bump in the night, so I'll return the favour for you being so nice to Juvia." He sighed, still not looking down at her.

"I'm not scared of the dark..." She mumbled, puffing her cheeks out in annoyance, earning a strange noise of amusement from the man. "And you're not that scary."

"You really think so, Shrimp? I'll bear that in mind when we get back to yours." He grinned, elbowing her arm lightly.

"You're walking a complete stranger home instead of just abandoning her and I know that you have your hand in your pocket feeling for your phone vibrating in case Juvia calls." Levy smirked, looking up at him knowingly.

"Doesn't mean I ain't scary, Shrimp." He grunted, looking away in the opposite direction from her, seemingly avoiding looking at her.

"You keep hiding your face from me, why? In the club, you stood too close for me to get a good look at you and, out here, you won't look at me unless you're sure your face will be covered in shadows." Levy returned, stopping once more, earning another shove to her shoulder.

"Keep stopping and we'll never make it to yours." He sighed, still avoiding her.

"Why are you avoiding me?" She demanded, attempting to stand her ground even after being moved a few steps by the force of his push.

"I ain't avoiding you, Shrimp – I'm walking you home! I don't usually do this shit, so hurry up! I got better shit to do, but Juvia'll give me hell if she finds out I made you walk home alone." He growled, shoving her harder.

"I don't need you to." She snapped back, slipping her heels off. "I think I'll just go on ahead – tell Juvia I said hi."

"You're crazy, Shrimp – there's a lot of assholes out here that'll take advantage of a girl like you." He sighed, the side of his face suddenly stinging as he stood there, completely stunned.

Levy ran along the street, trying to get away from the jerk who'd successfully managed to insult her three times in one statement. He'd called her crazy, small and referred to her as a girl. She was eighteen years old and had looked after herself for years! How dare that giant idiot just come along and start insulting her like that, pretending to be paying back a favour!? He was probably talking about himself in the third person when he'd mentioned assholes who'd take advantage of her!

"Well, well, what do we have here?!"

Levy stopped, two men suddenly standing in front of her. What had she done? Juvia had had such faith in Gajeel and she couldn't even muster enough to let him walk her home. What if he had some sort of terrible scar from rescuing someone and _that_ had been what he'd been hiding in case he'd scared her? What if she'd just run away from the man who had genuinely wanted to help her, accusing him of wanting to do things to her, only to run into the men he was trying to protect her from?

"A nice little girl, all alone in the dark."

"Should we maybe teach her what happens to little girls that run around these streets at night?"

"Back off."

Levy spun around, feeling relief wash over her as Gajeel stood directly in front of her. She didn't care if she still couldn't see his face; he was certainly more welcome than these two. She turned back to look at the guys as Gajeel stepped between them and her. She watched as the first guy swung at Gajeel, Gajeel dodging perfectly, holding her behind him with one strong arm as he twisted round, his back now facing the direction she had been running.

"Shrimp, go on ahead – I'll deal with these two." He growled, not taking his eyes off of his opponents. "And Shrimp, don't ever do that again."

Levy nodded and turned to run, following his instructions as she continued in the direction of her home, praying that Gajeel would be alright. He was outnumbered two to one, but what could she do? She began to pull her phone out of her bag, trying to find Lucy's number as she continued to run. She pressed the dial key, lifting the phone to her ear. She heard it ring, waiting desperately for her best friend to answer, beginning to babble as she heard Lucy's voice, only to learn she'd gotten the answer phone. Why wasn't Lucy answering? Was she already asleep?

"You don't run very fast." A gruff male voice came from behind her, startling her enough to cause her to lose her balance. A large hand grabbed her wrist just in time to stop her fall. "And you're too damn jumpy – it's me, Shrimp."

"Oh thank god, it's just you!" Levy sighed with relief, her free hand falling to her knee as she bent over, trying to regain her breath.

"That's something I ain't ever heard before, gihe." Gajeel grinned, releasing her wrist and standing back up straight.

"You really saved me back there...thanks." She smiled up at him. Even with his face still cast in shadow, he was certainly a sight for sore eyes. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine – I'll just have a black eye from your bag to explain to my boss tomorrow, but I think he'll be fine with it given the circumstances." He smirked, rustling her hair as he moved to continue walking. "Much further to yours?"

"Just around the next corner." Levy hummed, walking a little closer to Gajeel. "I'm not cold anymore though."

"Running does that to you." He grunted, pulling his phone out of his pocket and flicking it open. "I'd have offered you my jacket, but I ain't got one with me."

"That's very sweet of you, Gajeel." She teased, walking into the side of him playfully.

"Don't repeat that." He growled, shoving her back. "I got a reputation to uphold."

"And yet you're walking a girl home as a favour for helping out your female best friend – do you sit in a meadow together making daisy chains?" She laughed, stepping out of the reach of his long arms.

"No, we don't." He grunted, Levy sure that he was glaring at her. "Now where the hell do you live, or are you just enjoying walking the streets with me?"

"That's actually me there." She smiled sadly, pointing at a set of steps half a block away. "I'm on the second floor."

"Right, should I leave you outside, or do I walk you to your door? Like I said, I ain't done this shit before." He grumbled, rubbing his neck awkwardly under his hair which seemed surprisingly heavy.

"Well, if you come up, I can have a look at that black eye for you? I might be able to stop it bruising too badly?" She offered, smiling hopefully up at him.

"That would be a bad idea." He grunted, looking away from her. "I'll walk you to your door, but I ain't coming in."

"Why not?" Levy frowned, taking hold of his arm and feeling him tense at her touch.

"You really need to start listening, Shrimp." He sighed, watching the approaching steps. "I'm bigger and scarier than anything at goes bump in the night."

"I still don't believe you're all that scary – you're walking me home and you saved me from two guys. I'm pretty sure you're going to go check on Juvia once you've made sure I'm home safe." She smiled down at her feet, feeling her cheeks warm slightly. "What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm supposed to be big and threatening, so I doubt you're gonna think I'm cute and cuddly, Shrimp – trust me, I'm a scary looking guy." He grunted, glancing down at her before returning his attention to the steps as they stopped at the bottom of them.

"Juvia likes you."

"Juvia's known me for years."

"Just come up – I'm not going to scream in your face."

"No, but you'll get a terrified expression and wonder how the hell Juvia puts up with having to look at a guy like me."

"I know you're a nice guy and you've admitted to trying to look scary, so I know it's all just a big act. I have seen through you, Gajeel- I don't know your last name...?"

"Redfox." He grinned, pushing her towards the steps. "And tell that to the two guys I just beat up."

"For me." She added, smiling back at the top of his lowered head. "Long, black hair, huh? Interesting."

"In what way?" He replied, Levy hearing a smirk to his tone.

"Intentional or just never bother to get it cut?" She asked, fishing her keys out of her bag and pushing the first one into the lock.

"You'll never know." He teased, pushing her by her ass in through the door.

"Oi! Watch where you put your hands!" She snapped, her cheeks burning. "Anything you want to warn me about, other than the fact that you apparently look scary? I see you have your forearms pierced, and your ears."

"Yeah, I've got a few piercings; you got a problem with that?" He returned, his voice completely neutral.

"No, I don't, but does that mean there are more?" Levy asked, trying to picture her mysterious rescuer.

"Wouldn't you like to know!?" He smirked, shoving her ass again as they continued up the steps inside.

"Will you _please_ at least watch where you put your hand when you shove me?! That's twice now! I know you're trying to hide your face from me, but that is just a little ridiculous!" She exclaimed, stopping on the top step to turn to face him.

"Who says I wasn't, gihe!?" He replied, turning his head away, Levy catching the side of his smirk cutting into a tanned cheek.

"So you're touching my butt on purpose? In which case, wouldn't I have been better taking my chances with the two guys back there?" She sighed, rolling her eyes as she turned to walk to the bottom of the next set of steps.

"That's not funny." He stated, the seriousness in his voice causing her to stop dead. "I may pride myself in being a scary guy, but I ain't planning to rape you in some shitty alleyway – so what if I touched your ass a few times? You have a nice ass, but if you really want, I'll stop. I ain't a fucking rapist."

"...Sorry, I- I wasn't trying to say you were...that was childish..." She mumbled, looked back at him apologetically, regretting her choice of argument. "Thanks...for saving me...from them and...thanks for complimenting my butt...but could you...you know, stop touching it...please? It's kind of a little embarrassing."

"It's fine – I shouldn't have put you in a position where you had to ask me to stop...got a little carried away." He replied awkwardly, standing on the top step of the first flight of stairs.

"It's okay, really." She smiled, finding the strange guy unbelievably adorable as he stood there like a lost puppy. "If you hurry up, I might still be able to stop that eye of yours from bruising."

She laughed as he only just stopped himself from looking up at her in his surprise. Even if he'd been a jerk, he had rescued her and apologised, even admitting he'd been wrong. He was surprisingly sweet for a guy that referred to himself as big and scary. Although, Levy had met bigger guys before and they usually turned out to be soft, kind-hearted idiots. This guy was probably just the same, to the point where he'd walked a complete stranger home the second he'd realised she was afraid of the dark.

Levy took hold of the second key and turned it in the lock, before grabbing the third key and turning it in the final lock, pushing the handle down and leaning against the door. She walked into her flat, expecting Gajeel to just follow her in. She paused, not hearing steps behind her. She turned to look back for him. Gajeel stood awkwardly in her doorway with his face hidden, holding the door open with one hand while the other remained wrapped tightly around his phone in his pocket.

"You're about to start yelling at me to get out of here, so I guess I'll just say goodnight now." He sighed, moving to turn away.

"Wait! I meant it when I invited you in – you don't need to leave." Levy replied, taking a step towards him. "At least let me see to your eye?"

"You wouldn't be saying that if you'd seen me. You would have freaked out at the club and ran like hell when you found out that Juvia was following you. She's a nice girl – don't judge her for the friends she keeps." He grunted, turning his back on her.

"I have been judging you based on the impression I got from her and I only ran because you insist on hiding your face, which has actually been the scariest thing about you." She smiled, shaking her head at him.

"You really wanna see my face that badly?" He replied, stopping the door from closing.

Levy nodded, biting her lip nervously as he began to turn back to her. The outside of his ears were lined with piercings and Levy was sure she could see some on his nose as he stood, hanging his head low, in her doorway. Levy stepped forward, placing a hand on the door to hold it open. She watched as he lifted his head to look back at her, narrow, crimson orbs staring back at her. His eyebrows and nose each had three silver piercings lining them, along with two silver spheres gracing his bottom lip, the pale, shiny metal contrasting with his naturally tanned skin. His defined cheekbones gave him a decidedly mature look, matching with the expression reflected in the dark slits that formed his pupils, pupils that told her he had seen so much more than he should have in his short life.

"Beautiful..." She whispered, staring into the deep, crimson pools that were his eyes.

"...You're not afraid?" He replied, his voice hushed as he maintained eye contact.

"No-one else could look like you in a thousand years." She smiled, reaching out to touch his lip piercing.

"I'd be impressed if someone did, gihe." He grinned, his eyes flicking down briefly before he continued to stare back at her.

"You did this to make yourself look scary...? You failed there...All you did was express yourself and you look truly fascinating." She replied, circling her fingertips over the two metal spheres.

"Fascinating, huh...?" He whispered, edging closer to her.

"Very..." She mumbled, leaning towards him slowly.

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 **Hope you enjoyed this! Sorry about this last week!**

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I do _not_ recommend getting drunk and then running back _alone_ if you forget your coat! Go back the next day as the doors open! Not everyone is as nice as Gajeel is in this! _Yes_ , guys should be careful too! I also believe you should be careful about letting random strangers into your home, especially if you live alone! Levy had spent her night with Juvia (and the others), so she did know _some_ things about Gajeel. She probably didn't know enough, but she was still wary of him! If you don't know someone personally, you should _still_ not open yourself up to a point of being vulnerable. And one last thing, _do not_ _leave your drunk friend alone with a group of complete strangers!_ As Levy rightly worries, they could have been murders. They could have done anything to Lucy or Juvia. They were two muscular guys and a strong woman. They _could_ have just been nice in the club to lure them into a false sense of security. Juvia certainly hadn't been worried (either she can't handle her drink or she'd just had too much, but she _could_ have been drugged), but she _had_ known the three of them from somewhere else. Lucy had clearly decided that Natsu was a really nice guy, but she hadn't be sure about the idea of Levy going back alone. It apparently hadn't occurred to her that she herself could be in danger. Basically, _do not do what Levy, Lucy or Juvia do in this!_

...They would be the three ships in this, wouldn't they? But go Erza! Isn't she great in this?! She realises Juvia is following Levy so she intervenes. When Juvia won't give a straight answer, she makes sure that Levy knows about Juvia (including taking Juvia up to Levy so that Juvia can't just sneak away again). Then she gets Levy back to Lucy. _Then tries to find Juvia's friend!_ When they can't find Gajeel, instead of just abandoning Juvia, they make sure that she stays safe in the club and then take her home! We need more Erza's in the world!

 _Sorry about the "serious message" at the end...It wasn't planned...I just felt it was an important message...The three of them really didn't do well with the "Stranger Danger" thing...It's just as well that Gajeel, Erza, Natsu and Gray were all nice people!_


End file.
